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Poly(trimethylene terephthalate) (PTT) composites filled with well‐dispersed functionalized multi‐walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNT‐COOH) and graphene nanosheets (GNS) were prepared through in situ polymerization. The effect of increased nanotubes and nanosheets concentration on the electrical conductivity and rheological behavior was investigated. The electrical conductivity increased by about ten orders of magnitude for PTT/MWCNT‐COOH/GNS composites with 0.4 wt% of MWCNT‐COOH and 0.3 wt% of GNS content. For insulating hybrid polymer nanocomposites, with a MWCNT‐COOH content ≤ 0.2 wt%, GNS produces a synergic effect by acting as junction additive for MWCNT leading to additional conductive pathways. However, for hybrid nanocomposites with 0.4 wt% of MWCNT‐COOH further addition of GNS caused only slight improvement in electrical conductivity. Additionally, rheological analysis confirmed interconnected or network‐like structures formed as a result of nanofiller‐nanofiller and nanofiller‐polymer interactions. POLYM. COMPOS., 39:2961–2968, 2018. © 2017 Society of Plastics Engineers [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this report, we investigated how barrier and mechanical properties of poly(ethylene terephthalate) were influenced by carbon nanoadditives which differ in shape (1D, 2D) and particle size. The results obtained for PET/expanded graphite (EG) and PET/single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNT) were compared with the results obtained for PET/EG+SWCNT hybrid nanocomposites. The different morphologies affect the dispersion of carbon nanoparticles in in situ prepared PET nanocomposites and play a crucial role in structure-property relationship. Good distribution of expanded graphite nanosheets along with some nanotube agglomerates was observed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Uniformly distributed EG with SWCNT agglomerates caused an enhancement in mechanical properties. We also found that the barrier properties of PET/EG+SWCNT hybrid nanocomposites are far better than neat PET. The described influence of carbon nanomaterials on the properties of PET hybrid nanocomposites is mostly due to addition of well-exfoliated graphene nanoplatelets and less due to the presence of tubular carbon nanoparticles, which were observed to form agglomerates. POLYM. COMPOS., 37:1949-1959, 2016. © 2015 Society of Plastics Engineers [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]